Who's your Top 5 NBA players of all time ?
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I've got the same except Hakeem instead of magic. Who would guard Hakeem on your squad? Nobody
He was a beast
Dom Wilkins Doc Rivers mark Jackson tree Rollins moses Malone Kevin duck worth lambeer Patrick Ewing Gerald Wilkins
Late eighties/early nineties NBA was fum
For me personal mid 80's to early 90's was fun NBA!
Are we making a team or are we just listing players?
If it's just a list, some of the choices I'm seeing are ridiculous. Robertson has no business in the discussion. Stockton and Malone do not either. It's debateable they were even the best player at their position when they played.
Everyone on the list should have multiple rings, multiple MVP's, and multiple Finals MVP's.
MJ
Kareem
James
Bird
Duncan
Magic
I'll give you Kobe, Shaq, and Hakeem because they probably should have won another MVP at some point. Russell and Wilt would have multiple finals MVP's if the award existed throughout their careers.
Those are your choices.
If it's just a list, some of the choices I'm seeing are ridiculous. Robertson has no business in the discussion. Stockton and Malone do not either. It's debateable they were even the best player at their position when they played.
Everyone on the list should have multiple rings, multiple MVP's, and multiple Finals MVP's.
MJ
Kareem
James
Bird
Duncan
Magic
I'll give you Kobe, Shaq, and Hakeem because they probably should have won another MVP at some point. Russell and Wilt would have multiple finals MVP's if the award existed throughout their careers.
Those are your choices.
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You must not know Oscar Robertson. Some of the ridiculous stats that James Harden put up this season with triple-doubles are only now approaching Robertson territory. He was and still is the best PG to play the game.
Karl Malone is second only to Jabbar in points scored and is the best PF in the game, IMHO.
Robertson
Jordan
James
K. Malone
Shaq
You put anyone who is in the conversation of best pg ever and have them play in the 60's, they would put up ridiculous numbers. Both because of the drop in overall competition, and because of all the extra possessions they'd get from the faster pace they played back then.
I'm not one of those RINGZ idiots, but you still need to win to be in the conversation. All Malone has is one MVP, and people joke about how undeserving it was to this day. He'd be tied with Barkley for the fourth forward I would take after James, Bird, and Duncan (if you consider him a forward).
Oscar Robertson was a 6'5" point guard that would dominate the game at his position in any era.
If you want to use metrics to analyze players across the years, there is a Similarity Scoring method:
Robertson ranks higher in this metric than Jerry west, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and anyone
else to play the guard position in the NBA.
He was a 12-time all star and in the top 5 of the MVP voting 9 consecutive years.
4th all time in FT attempts
6th all time in assists
9th in points per game
I'll make a team from the 1960's that would win the NBA title right now:
PG Robertson
SG Jerry west
SF Elgin Baylor
PF Bill Russell
C Wilt Chamberlain
I see folks say that Wilt was bigger and stronger than everyone else and that is why he was able to do that back in the day. Those same folks say LeBron is one of the best ever. LeBron is what he is because he is a matchup nightmare just like Wilt. He is too big and strong for small guards but too quick for most post guys. If LeBron is one of the greatest because he is an athletic freak of nature and is hard for anyone to guard then you can't discount what Wilt was able to accomplish for the same reasons.
Agree with you completely. Doesn't being difficult to guard kind of a all-time great trait?
Who was more of a matchup problem than Shaq? This is a difficult list to compile with lots of room for debate. Shaq is my center, but it is so close with Wilt. Robertson is my PG, edging out Magic.
Did you see Wilt play? Anybody who thinks Jabbar was better than Wilt is seriously reaching.. Wilt was better defensively, offensively, and physically. Jabbar was a winner though and the sky hook was revolutionary. The NBA never changed it's rules to slow down Kareem though... It did for Wilt
IMO he's overrated. He was absolutely great defensively but not so much offensively. He also played on teams that would have won without him. Of the centers I pertsonally saw play a good deal I'd put him 3rd.. Wilt, Jabbar were better IMO
You sound like Matt Jones....you think your opinion is the only one that is right.
Some opinions are right and some are wrong. Pretending that they're all equal and you can have whatever opinion you want and no one can tell you otherwise is disastrous.
I wish fifth grade teachers would stop teaching the false dichotomy that everything is either a fact or an opinion.
Anyone who thinks Kareem was better than Wilt is reaching? Well then the majority of the educated and respected basketball community is reaching. They must not value arbitrary nonsense enough.
I'm sure someone was the reason they don't use peach baskets anymore. That's the benefit of playing a long time ago against inferior competition, not an indication of greatness.
The game/league needed to change and grow because it was in its infancy, which, if anything, discounts Wilt's greatness because it shows that the dynamic of the league wasn't one that could conceive of a man who was of what is now a common size. They'd have had to change the rules for DeAndre Jordan, but he isn't a top five player all time.
You can think Wilt is better than Kareem if you think Westbrook is better than LeBron James. Elite talent putting up hollow stats in a situation geared toward featuring them doesn't equate to greatness. Or is Pete Maravich better than Kareem too?
Any Top 5 without Bill Russell, the absolute GOAT and nobody close, is a joke!!!!
You think the greatest player of all time averaged 15 points per game on 45% shooting as a center in an era with 8 teams and few big men?
And it isn't even close? Is Bob Cousy better than Magic Johnson?
I gave my opinion and everyone is entitled to their opinion. You are the one who is saying anyone that thinks Wilt should be top 5 is wrong. So sounds like you need to practice what you preach. You seem to be the only one of the two of us saying others opinions are wrong.
Didn't have this guy on my list of 5 above but he's not too awfully bad, take a look (Mr. Larry Bird).
Good debate while we wait for October!
Kareem played over 20 seasons and his yearly averages aren't that impressive. I give him all the credit for longevity but cannot make him a top 3 center.
There are 2 players I can think of that have had great names bestowed on them only to change them:
Lew Alcindor
Cassius Clay
Kareem played over 20 seasons and his yearly averages aren't that impressive. I give him all the credit for longevity but cannot make him a top 3 center.
There are 2 players I can think of that have had great names bestowed on them only to change them:
Lew Alcindor
Cassius Clay
I have to question the basketball knowledge of anyone who says Kareem wasn't a top 3 center. His peak years were dominant, and he was still scoring 23 a game on 56% shooting at the age of 39. No other player, let alone center, comes close to that type of production and efficiency at that age.
Kareem when he was in his prime his first 12 to 14 years he put up monster numbers. Several years over 30 points a game. several years over 16 rebounds a game. years of 3.5 & 4 blocked shots a game. To say he's not a Top 3 center of all time. Please, you don't want to say that.
No duh, the five best players in the league at the time who you could actually compare to modern athletes would make a pretty good team. That doesn't disprove anything I said. He has 1 MVP and he put up stats in an era where having his physical gifts and the play style would allow you to put up ridiculous numbers. He has one title which was a result of teaming up with Kareem after he started declining. I never said he wasn't great, he was, but in this discussion he just doesn't fit.Oscar Robertson was a 6'5" point guard that would dominate the game at his position in any era.
If you want to use metrics to analyze players across the years, there is a Similarity Scoring method:
Robertson ranks higher in this metric than Jerry west, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and anyone
else to play the guard position in the NBA.
He was a 12-time all star and in the top 5 of the MVP voting 9 consecutive years.
4th all time in FT attempts
6th all time in assists
9th in points per game
I'll make a team from the 1960's that would win the NBA title right now:
PG Robertson
SG Jerry west
SF Elgin Baylor
PF Bill Russell
C Wilt Chamberlain
I don't think it's fair to hold fg% against him. It was about quantity more than quality back then. If he was born 20 years ago and had all of the modern day benefits, he's prime Dwight Howard with Nikola Jokic's passing and a killer instinct. That's a great player, easily in the hall of fame. Best player in the league? I don't know.
Would rather have Wilt as the center.Better rebounder and defensive player
Since basketball is a team sport the object is to win titles, 11 world championships is a very good indicator of how good he was . He made the other team members better .
1st team
Magic
MJ
Lebron
Malone
Kareem
2nd team
Isiah Thomas
Kobe
Dr. J
Barkley
Shaq
Dr. J is my favorite player ever.
Magic
MJ
Lebron
Malone
Kareem
2nd team
Isiah Thomas
Kobe
Dr. J
Barkley
Shaq
Dr. J is my favorite player ever.
I stand by my opinion that Oscar Robertson is the best PG to ever play the game.
I will also opinionize that Lebron James has become the best player in the history of the NBA.
The 1996 Cats were the best Kentucky team ever.
The 1984 loss to Georgetown was the worst ever.
Kyle Macy was the most popular Wildcat ever.
Jamal Mashburn was the best player at UK ever.
Darrell Griffith was the best Kentucky HS player ever.
George Blanda is the greatest football player from UK ever.
I will also opinionize that Lebron James has become the best player in the history of the NBA.
The 1996 Cats were the best Kentucky team ever.
The 1984 loss to Georgetown was the worst ever.
Kyle Macy was the most popular Wildcat ever.
Jamal Mashburn was the best player at UK ever.
Darrell Griffith was the best Kentucky HS player ever.
George Blanda is the greatest football player from UK ever.
As I said in an earlier post the same ones who say Wilt wasn't great because he was bigger, stronger and faster than the competition are the same ones who say LeBron is the greatest. If LeBron was 6"5 and 210 lbs he isn't on the list either. He is only considered the greatest because of the added bonus of being a 6"8 and 260 lb athletic freak. His skillset doesn't set him apart as much as his physical abilities.
In answer to your first and second questions: Absolutely!!! Eleven championships in 13 years sealed it for me!
There is a lot more to BB than scoring. Defense, rebounding, passing, making the players around you better, making the clutch play at crunch time. Russell excelled in these areas like no other!!! Hence, the 11 championships!! Oh, I nearly forgot to mention his 2 NCAA championships and Olympic gold metal.Re your third question: Haven't really given it any thought.
